Ian Evatt's hope for Sheffield Wednesday clash as praise heaped on 'outstanding' Bolton defender

Ian Evatt hopes there will not be too much fatigue in his Bolton Wanderers players following their exertions over the past week and their fitness shines through for the visit of Sheffield Wednesday this weekend.

Wanderers are unbeaten so far this season and sit in the play-off positions in the very early stages of the campaign. They are in the midst of a busy Saturday-Tuesday fixture list.

Last Saturday, Wanderers played for approaching an hour with 10 men in the draw against Port Vale during a heatwave as Ricardo Santos was sent off. Evatt made five changes for the midweek victory over Morecambe.

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Evatt believes any fatigue in his players will only be natural after their efforts over the past week. The five changes he made for the game against the Shrimps was always planned and he hopes their fitness and freshness shines through against the Owls.

Asked about fatigue in his players ahead of taking on Wednesday, Evatt said: “Possibly and that’s only natural with the effort we had to put in to Saturday in that heat, but the players are fit. You’ve seen with some of their counterattacks how quickly we chase back and regain and our reaction in transition is first class.

“The boys worked really hard in pre-season and I think they’re going to see the benefits of that. Now it’s about rest, recovery and going again on Saturday.

“It was always planned to make that many changes. We’ve got a really good squad of players and I trust them all to play a part so it’s managing that with the right players for the right occasion.

“Hopefully we can get some more freshness back in for Saturday.”

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